tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1349710577732511399Thu, 24 May 2018 18:23:08 +0000combustibles fossilespollutionfracturation hydrauliqueactivismefaunedémocratieagricultureeaux uséesfloreeau potableRivière Richelieuruissellementeaux pluvialesbaignadeSaint-Laurentbarrageporcherierefuge faunique Pierre-Étienne-FortinGrands Lacsbandes riverainessédimentsnucléaireLac ChamplainérosionChevalier cuivréAthabascaMississippimétéoHudsonbouesYamaskaEmoryChesapeakeSusquehannahTennesseeKalamazooConnecticutDelawareChâteauguayDavid SchindlerPotomacdébâclefiltrationAQLPABaie MissisquoiClinchMackenzieMonongahelaSaint-FrançoisozoneBlack RiverColumbiaGreenpeaceHornIllinoisPeace RiverRomaineWinooskiultravioletColoradoJacques-CartierLos Angeles RiverMill RiverMohawkPenobscotWinnipegYellowstone Riverdémocratie fracturation hydraulique activisme combustibles fossilessables bitumineuxAltamahaAmericanAndroscogginBaie de FundyBatiscanBlackfootBow RiverBoyerBronte CreekBécancourCasselmanChemungChicagoCongareeDetroit RiverDunkard CreekEauSecoursFlatheadFranquelinGeorgeGlenn AlbrechtGoldstreamGrand Calumet RiverGrassy NarrowsHarvey MeadHemlock RunHillsboroughHobackJordanJosephKankakeeKrono CreekLa RomaineLac Saint-JeanLower Montsweag BrookLycoming CreekMaumeeMeadow CreekMemphrémagogMilk RiverMill CreekMissouriMistassiniNemadjiNew RiverNicoletNorth OconeeOkanaganOld MillOsgoodOuiatchouanPee DeeRed Butte CreekRestigoucheRicherRivannaRiverkeepersRivière du NordRivière-aux-SablesRuisseau DalpéRupertSaguenaySaint-GermainSaint-MauriceSainte-AnneSalmoSan FranciscoSan JoaquinSand PondSanduskySaranacSault-aux-CochonsSchenk's BranchSheldrakeSouth SaskatchewanTrail CreekTrois-PistolesTwelve Mile CreekUticaWabashWabigoonWalden PondWatopékaWest Barneys RiverWhite OakWillametteWulikYadkinYakimaactbiodiversitéruisseau CatherineLes Ami(e)s du RichelieuUne rivière. Une passion.http://lesamisdurichelieu.blogspot.com/noreply@blogger.com (Amie du Richelieu)Blogger2205125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1349710577732511399.post-3815184543933866868Thu, 24 May 2018 18:23:00 +00002018-05-24T14:23:08.377-04:00Gunshot!<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-gZIHoHyWkbw/UR4rAYQNMkI/AAAAAAAAKyc/mdsHDNAkUfU/s1600/icestorm+front.jpg" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-gZIHoHyWkbw/UR4rAYQNMkI/AAAAAAAAKyc/mdsHDNAkUfU/s320/icestorm+front.jpg"></a><br />Yesterday, I was working in my woodpile in the backyard, stacking firewood while listening to the birds signing all around me. Suddenly, a loud "crack" on the left of me, then immediatly after, a metallic "bing" to the right: I recognized the sound of an air BB gun. So I looked up to my left, trying to see through the thick cedar hedge of my neighbor`s.<br /><br />I could not see a thing until he moved. I could make him out between the branches, and he was carrying a black rifle. I then heard a "pffft". The cartridge sounded empty. That`s when he walked back to his house with it and went in by the basement door.<br /><br />My heart was beating real fast. I don`t think he knew I was there. He`s a bit deaf for working in construction without any ear protection. If he had fired again, I would have cried out, making him aware that I knew what he was up to. I thought of calling the police, but I have already accused him of assault in the past and he had pleaded guilty and just got a letter from the prosecutor (I got a copy). So was it worth calling the police?<br /><br />He already makes me uneasy, and now I will be event more watchful of him.http://lesamisdurichelieu.blogspot.com/2018/05/gunshot.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Amie du Richelieu)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1349710577732511399.post-2354670867829247701Mon, 07 May 2018 18:53:00 +00002018-05-07T14:53:10.050-04:00Pauvre Rivière Richelieu!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-QCkpUdcw1Og/UNMDsK5S3EI/AAAAAAAAJ_Y/CH9HPOx8vD0/s1600/Bassin%2Bde%2BChambly.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="275" width="400" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-QCkpUdcw1Og/UNMDsK5S3EI/AAAAAAAAJ_Y/CH9HPOx8vD0/s400/Bassin%2Bde%2BChambly.jpg"></a></div><br />Je me demande ce qui pousse Marcel Comiré, directeur général de Covabar à dire "qu`il n`y a pas de péril dans la demeure" dans <a href="https://www.journaldechambly.com/pas-de-peril-en-la-demeure-selon-le-covabar/">Le Journal de Chambly du 25 avril 2018</a>, réagissant à l`<a href="https://www.journaldechambly.com/un-rapport-alarmant-sur-la-riviere-richelieu/">article du Journal du 18 avril</a> sur "un rapport alarmant sur la rivière Richelieu", rapport de Fondation Rivières mettant en lumière le piètre bilan des mauvaises performances des usines d’épuration qui déversent des égouts non-traités dans la rivière.<br /><br />Pourquoi minimiser l`importance et la portée de ce rapport désolant sinon pour nous faire accepter la médiocrité? Faut-il en comprendre que se complaire dans la pollution est modus operandi chez Covabar, ou est-ce seulement l`opinion de son directeur général?<br /><br />Je me rappelle que Marcel Comiré avait exprimé publiquement pas mal le même point de vue suite à la non-acceptabilité sociale exprimés par la majorité des citoyens de Richelieu suite à l`annonce de l`implantation d`une porcherie de 5,800 têtes sur gestion liquide en page une du Journal de Chambly le 6 septembre 2005. Les gens de Richelieu s`étaient énervés bien pour rien, ai-je compris de ses interventions sur le sujet.<br /><br />Quels sont les effets de telles déclarations sur la perception qu`a la population vis-à-vis Covabar? L`organisme se dit un "comité de concertation" pour tous ceux qui se trouvent dans le bassin versant de la rivière Richelieu. Je me demande quelle sorte de gens sont les bienvenus à sa table.http://lesamisdurichelieu.blogspot.com/2018/05/pauvre-riviere-richelieu.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Amie du Richelieu)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1349710577732511399.post-3762438157647747895Thu, 03 May 2018 18:52:00 +00002018-05-03T14:52:56.802-04:00Le Regard Des Autres<br />Dès que j`ai acheté ma maison en 1979, j`ai commencé à lui faire subir des changements, à commencer par la brique rouge dont je trouvais des morceaux dans la neige par grands froids et vents. D`ailleurs, la maison était un ancien camps d`été et la brique lui donnait un air de petite école que je détestais.<br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-oo0Y3Zj2yJ4/VpkQoIjuo5I/AAAAAAAAP2k/4wkEoHF0law/s1600/home%2B1979.jpg" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-oo0Y3Zj2yJ4/VpkQoIjuo5I/AAAAAAAAP2k/4wkEoHF0law/s400/home%2B1979.jpg"></a><br /><br />Et j`ai toujours aimé travailler dehors sur le terrain aussi. Mais un moment donné, surtout l`été, j`ai remarqué qu`un homme en auto ralentissait souvent devant chez moi pour mieux m`observer et parfois même il s`arrêtait sur le bord de la rue et regardait chez moi.<br /><br />Je ne reconnaissais pas le bonhomme et bientôt sa présence m`irritait autant qu`elle m`effrayait. Alors j`ai décidé de le confronter, mais quand il me voyait venir vers lui, il repartait aussitôt.<br /><br />Après des années de me faire épier de la sorte, un jour que je m`avançais vers lui, il ne s`est pas enfui. Le coeur battant bien fort, appréhendant la rencontre et voyant que sa fenêtre d`auto était baissée, je lui ai demandé ce qu`il me voulait. D`un air désapprobateur, fronçant les sourcils, il me dit: "C`est affreux ce que tu as fait avec cette maison-là!" puis démarra dans son auto.<br /><br />Je ne savais pas plus qui il était. Il n`était pas le fils d`un ancien propriétaire précédent: celui-ci m`avait déjà visité et nous nous sommes bien entendus. Alors qui était-ce? Qui était cet homme qui empoisonnait mes étés, me rendant nerveuse et peureuse, moi sur mon terrain à moi? Devrais-je le rapporter à la police?<br /><br />Bien des années plus tard, je repris contact avec un ancien ami d`enfance. On s`est retrouvés un moment donné aux funérailles de sa cousine, une de mes meilleures amies d`enfance. Et il était là! L`homme inconnu qui m`avait épié pendant des années était là, et mon ami d`enfance me dit que c`était son grand frère! Le grand frère ne m`a jamais adressé la parole cette journée-là, et moi je l`évitais comme la peste.<br /><br />Après un certains temps, je me confiais à mon ami d`enfance retrouvé et expliquais le comportement bizarre de son grand frère pendant des années. Et au lieu de sympathiser avec moi pour tous ces moments d`effroi que j`ai dû subir, il s`attendrit en disant "Pauvre ti-gars! C`est bien lui, faire des affaires de même!" J`avais commis un crime de lèse-majesté en modifiant la maison où sa première épouse décédée avait grandi.<br /><br />Alors selon certaines personnes, quand on achète une maison, avant de la modifier, il faudrait consulter tous ses propriétaires précédents et leur famille et leurs amis, pour être bien sûr de ne pas les choquer? Balivernes!<br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-hHYoyxAI7o8/UV7l9ucp05I/AAAAAAAALOg/SWr94CefYhQ/s1600/FIL2.JPG" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-hHYoyxAI7o8/UV7l9ucp05I/AAAAAAAALOg/SWr94CefYhQ/s320/FIL2.JPG"></a>http://lesamisdurichelieu.blogspot.com/2018/05/le-regard-des-autres.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Amie du Richelieu)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1349710577732511399.post-3864225086770847153Thu, 19 Apr 2018 19:11:00 +00002018-04-19T15:11:05.264-04:00The Kiss of DeathDuring the early 80s, thanks to a job agency, I had found a temporary job that I liked at an international company in downtown Montreal. For a couple of years, when the company needed extra staff at their dispatch center, they would give me a call for me to come in to work.<br /><br />It was a challenging job where I would meet interesting people. I would answer phone calls from customers needing servicing on their computers and calls from technicians calling in to update their workload schedule. It was a paperless office. Everyting was done on computers.<br /><br />Sometimes technicians would be called in to work at dispatch, but it was not considered a promotion, far from it. Most temporary dispatchers were women like me, but most of them were younger than I.<br /><br />At some point, a technician was called in from his work on the road to work with us at dispatch. Of course, he already knew all of us, and made a big show of greeting us all when he came in to work in the morning. And he liked to walk around the room and kiss the ladies while saying good morning. Most of us were too embarassed to say anything at first, saying good morning back, but very soon I feigned being on the phone the moment I saw him come in and would brush him off while talking on the phone when came my turn to be kissed. I noticed some other female employees did not appreciate the special attention he gave them, and soon complained to me when we met in the bathroom.<br /><br />And so I decided to go see our boss in his office, door closed. When I told him of the embarassing behavior, he assured me that he had not noticed anything, although that was hard to believe because his office had clear glass walls.<br /><br />Soon after, H.R. called me up in his office and asked me to explain the behavior I found embarassing, and asked me to name the other employees who werer inconvenienced by that behavior.<br /><br />I finished my employment time that year, and even though my ex-boss asked me to re-apply for the job the year after that, they never re-employed me, although the other younger employees were called back to work in dispatch. I was disappointed, but not surprised. http://lesamisdurichelieu.blogspot.com/2018/04/the-kiss-of-death.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Amie du Richelieu)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1349710577732511399.post-5180239270134399390Mon, 09 Apr 2018 18:50:00 +00002018-04-09T14:50:36.162-04:00When Men Tell Women What To Wear<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2nklT3cpOWM/ViJdek-NpsI/AAAAAAAAPbE/iPafFWO1LuU/s1600/MtlMontStatueEau.jpg" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2nklT3cpOWM/ViJdek-NpsI/AAAAAAAAPbE/iPafFWO1LuU/s400/MtlMontStatueEau.jpg"></a><br /><br />Back in the early-mid 80s, I was looking for a job. I had just worked 10 years for Bell Canada, and 3 1/2 years for IBM, both in downtown Montreal, both multicultural-bilingual workplaces.<br /><br />A job agency had found me a temporary part-time job at a Quebec-based very well known company as a receptionnist-mail-clerk, again in downtown Montreal. A few employees there were from English speaking descent, most were bilingual, but a few were French-speaking only Quebecers, in all about 70 employees in a sky-rise office that would be my co-workers.<br /><br />It was Fall, and I had a collection of tweed, wool and cord skirt and jacket ensembles to wear with tailored blouses, vests, matching wool kneesocks and leather penny loafers, a very British-European look for Autumn.<br /><br />A few weeks after being told that they would keep me as a permanent employee, my immediate boss, the head Accountant, called me in his office early one morning. His own boss, a very English speaking Controller, was out of town on business, so I wondered what my own boss wanted.<br /><br />After making me sit in his office and closing the door behing me, he explained that the way I dressed was not acceptable. I would have to buy some dresses and hose and high-heels, and had 2 weeks to do so or I would be fired.<br /><br />I was so stunned, I could barely believe what he was saying. He made me repeat what he just said, and sent me back to my post. I had to assume he was serious.<br /><br />Still in shock, I felt I had to talk about this with somebody, and the person I could most relate with and considered a friend was the President`s secretary (personal assistant), so when she came to pick up her mail, I asked her if I could talk to her some time during the day. Seeing how upset I was, she made me come to her desk during my coffee break.<br /><br />At her desk, I told her what just happened, and was still in shock and I cried. She asked me if it was true that I had laughed at my boss. I said that I may have had a frozen smile on my face only because I could barely believe what he was saying. I told her that even if I wanted to, there was no way I had the money to spend on a whole new wardrobe in 2 weeks, and could not walk with high-heels, not being used to them. She told me not to worry and to go back at my desk.<br /><br />When the Controller came back, he came to see me and told me not to mind what my boss had told me a few days earlier and assured me that I told the right person about it.<br /><br />Soon, my boss was transferred to a plant in Ontario, where I was told the worst of working conditions of our company were to be found there. I could hardly see my boss there as he could barely say hello in English even if he wanted to.<br /><br />A few years later, somebody quietly told me that my ex-boss who did not like my knee-socks and flat-heeled shoes had commited suicide. I did not have it in my heart to rejoice at the news.http://lesamisdurichelieu.blogspot.com/2018/04/when-men-tell-women-what-to-wear.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Amie du Richelieu)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1349710577732511399.post-4532821461309979530Thu, 22 Mar 2018 18:37:00 +00002018-03-22T15:05:11.893-04:00Beams: What They Mean To Me<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-fHPg9RD0mtk/VsHZZBQLDBI/AAAAAAAAP9c/iFHwHJ8y8CI/s1600/pi%25C3%25A8ce%2Bprincipale%2Btermin%25C3%25A9e.jpg" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-fHPg9RD0mtk/VsHZZBQLDBI/AAAAAAAAP9c/iFHwHJ8y8CI/s400/pi%25C3%25A8ce%2Bprincipale%2Btermin%25C3%25A9e.jpg" /></a><br /><br />I bought the house already tattered and tired. I knew it would require a lot of work to make it nice and tidy, but I was young and had all kinds of plans.<br /><br />For the main space, for example, I wanted the walls that made the hallway, the living room, the kitchen and the closed-in porch all to come down. Big beams would replace them to hold up the not quite finished second floor.<br /><br />And so the walls started coming down: only a few 2 X 3s were left standing until the beams could be lifted up in their place. The longest beam was to be 26 feet long, so how to make sure it could be brought inside the house and be able to close the front door afterwards?<br /><br />The only way to make sure was to do a dry run in a smaller scale. I drew the main floor plan down to scale, the 2 by 3s became pins, and the longest beam, the one I was the most worried about, became a length of plastic straw, cut down to scale.<br /><br />It became clear that in order to bring the 26 foot beam inside the house, the electric range would have to be removed from its cubby between the lower kinchen cabinets so that the front end of the beam could be pushed into that opening. Then the other end of the beam could be swung in front of the bedroom door opening. But it was going to be very tight, and so the bedroom door would have to be removed, and the dresser behing it moved out of the way also.<br /><br />This way the beam could be backed up in the bedroom, and the other end of the beam then could be swung back into the main room, out of the range`s location and pointing towards the opposite corner of the house. Then the other end of the beam would come out of the bedroom into the main space, and it now would be just a question of pushing the beam under its permanent location thanks to lenghts of pipes and round pieces of firewood to roll it on the floor.<br /><br />And so I was ready on delivery day, but the delivery men who came to check the place out were not so sure, but after convincing them that I had made all the measurements, they reluctantly brought in the 26 footer.<br /><br />Sure enough, everything went as planned. And some 25 years later, the beams became an integral part of the design when that space was finally finished.<br /><br />Looking up at my beams I am reminded that with a lot of determination, the right tools and serious planning, I can achieve anything I really want to!http://lesamisdurichelieu.blogspot.com/2018/03/beams-what-they-mean-to-me.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Amie du Richelieu)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1349710577732511399.post-3245385337801765401Mon, 12 Mar 2018 18:44:00 +00002018-03-12T15:07:30.187-04:00Chez Morisset<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ZV3_AbMKPnI/Uw3bTtSi-JI/AAAAAAAANKo/pOGBBCxQ7sg/s1600/maison+historique.jpg" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ZV3_AbMKPnI/Uw3bTtSi-JI/AAAAAAAANKo/pOGBBCxQ7sg/s400/maison+historique.jpg"></a>Photo: another old Richelieu landmark<br /><br />Another Richelieu landmark was brought down to rubble this morning. The two story house on Richelieu`s main thoroughfare belonged to a family who lived upstairs and whose father kept a truck-stop kind of restaurant where one could have his home-cooked meals, buy a newspaper, candy or gum and cigarettes while listening to the jukebox, center of attention to the local teenagers.<br /><br />When I was a child, on hot Sunday summer afternoons, my father would bring us there to have an ice-cream cone. My father also bought his Montreal Star newspaper there, and sent me there Saturdays to pick up his copy put aside for him. That is the only time my father wanted me there: he strictly forbade me to buy candy, gum, or hang out with the gang listening to the latest hits of that rock and roll he did not care too much about.<br /><br />The owner of the restaurant had a daughter about my age who went to the same school as I did, but she was much more popular than I was, of course, her having a juke-box and restaurant and all. I was never really accepted by her or her friends because I was not allowed to hang around in the restaurant. I did not mind that too much, because I much preferred to spend my time by the river or in the surrounding fields rather than stay cooped up in a smelly restaurant all afternoon. Because, of course, everybody smoked in there, and me and my parents did not.<br /><br />When the father/owner of the place got too old to stay in business, the place tried to survive as a breakfast truck-stop, then a dairy bar during the summer months, but the locals simply did not go there any more, and truck traffic was now mostly on the Eastern Township Highway, a couple of kms upriver. So Mr Morisset had it good while it was going. It was never the same again after he left.<br /><br />And now the building is demolished....http://lesamisdurichelieu.blogspot.com/2018/03/chez-morisset.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Amie du Richelieu)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1349710577732511399.post-4000105777137541934Mon, 05 Mar 2018 19:38:00 +00002018-03-05T14:38:41.967-05:00The Asburdity of Man<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-sEMaqFd96NM/Tke2BC-612I/AAAAAAAACyE/9y9vkFKahxo/s1600/Copy%2Bof%2B1955JoRiver.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 267px;" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-sEMaqFd96NM/Tke2BC-612I/AAAAAAAACyE/9y9vkFKahxo/s400/Copy%2Bof%2B1955JoRiver.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5640677187401733986"></a><br /><b>"Young man, nature is not frightening, it`s people who are frightening! You just need to get to know nature and it will become friendly. This creature known as man is of course highly intelligent, he`s capable of manufacturing almost anything from rumours to test-tube babies and yet he destroys two to three species every day. This is the absurdity of man."</b> - <i>Gao Xingjian</i>, Soul Mountainhttp://lesamisdurichelieu.blogspot.com/2018/03/the-asburdity-of-man.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Amie du Richelieu)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1349710577732511399.post-3605991254977500854Mon, 19 Feb 2018 19:56:00 +00002018-02-19T14:56:00.549-05:00Le monde des bilingues<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-uRk5G_LG6PA/VJK5c4huVeI/AAAAAAAAOng/wuNOhvIJPcA/s1600/travaille%2Bfort.jpg" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-uRk5G_LG6PA/VJK5c4huVeI/AAAAAAAAOng/wuNOhvIJPcA/s400/travaille%2Bfort.jpg"></a><br /><br /><b>"Il semblerait qu`il y ait quatre catégories de facteurs qui contrôlent séparément ou souvent groupés, le choix de la langue chez le bilingue: les interlocuteurs, la situation dans laquelle a lieu l`échange, le sujet, et enfin, la fonction de l`interaction. Concernant les interlocuteurs, un facteur important est la maîtrise qu`ils ont des langues. Normalement, on choisit la mieux connue par les deux afin d`assurer une communication efficace."</b> - <i>François Grosjean</i>, Parler plusieurs langues - Le monde des bilingueshttp://lesamisdurichelieu.blogspot.com/2018/02/le-monde-des-bilingues.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Amie du Richelieu)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1349710577732511399.post-8229824259517022857Thu, 25 Jan 2018 20:08:00 +00002018-01-25T15:08:08.359-05:00The distant sound of water flowing over the dam<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-7J7Dn6gJjvw/Tw7cgARVm9I/AAAAAAAAECA/UogCTCUAQeo/s1600/Barrage%2BChambly.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 269px;" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-7J7Dn6gJjvw/Tw7cgARVm9I/AAAAAAAAECA/UogCTCUAQeo/s400/Barrage%2BChambly.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5696733021056900050"></a><br /><br /><b>"Before she closed the door behind her, Jane turned for one last look at the river. The eternal promise of spring hung in the air and the rain that fell seemed perfumed with it - almost the smell of green itself.<br /><br />Closing the door, she heard- before it shut - the distant sound of the water flowing over the dam, and she closed her eyes to watch the river in her mind, flowing downstream to continue its everlasting journey towards open water, open skies and the promise everywhere of life. "</b> - <i>Timothy Findley</i>, Spadeworkhttp://lesamisdurichelieu.blogspot.com/2018/01/the-distant-sound-of-water-flowing-over.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Amie du Richelieu)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1349710577732511399.post-3832222247759573548Thu, 18 Jan 2018 19:27:00 +00002018-01-25T14:46:17.604-05:00Owning a home<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-hHYoyxAI7o8/UV7l9ucp05I/AAAAAAAALOg/SWr94CefYhQ/s1600/FIL2.JPG" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-hHYoyxAI7o8/UV7l9ucp05I/AAAAAAAALOg/SWr94CefYhQ/s320/FIL2.JPG"></a><br /><b>"And if you owned your own house - had taken up residence elsewhere - at whatever distance you could achieve - then you were safe. No more clawing fingers - no more cloying demands. Freedom. Freedom from the dead weight of the past."</b> - <i>Timothy Findlay</i>, Spadework<br /><br /> ***<br /><br />It was in the middle of winter. A Friday or Saturday evening. I must have been 18-19 or 20 years old. About the time I would go find work for a while to pay for going back to CEGEP. Just trying to get a DEC certificate - in anything!<br /><br />My father had made a fire in the fireplace, prepared drinks for my mother and himself, and they were sitting face to face each side of the fire. Soft background music was playing.<br /><br />I had taken a shower in the awful shower stall my father had built in the basement, and realized I had to cut my toenails. So still in pajamas and robe, I sat on the floor in front of the fire and cut my nails, throwing the cuttings in the fire.<br /><br />I don`t recall the exact words my father used, but he wanted me to do the job elsewhere. He did not keep the house very warm, and the central furnace thermostat was in that room with the fireplace, so I did not particularly want to be elsewhere right now.<br /><br />But it occured to me that I was not wanted. And the house I considered was my home clearly wasn`t. Not really.<br /><br />That gave me an awful feeling in the pit of my stomach. To feel unwanted. And homeless. I never felt so bad in all my life. And promised myself I would do ANYTHING to not feel that way ever again.<br /><br />And so my main goal in life was to become a homeowner. So if nobody wanted me, at least I had a home I could call my own. And nobody could kick me out. Or tell me what to do - or not to do.<br /><br /> ***<br /><br />I shall add here that when my husband and I first bought the house in 1979, my parents invited us for dinner to celebrate, and after the meal, my father told my husband and I that because my husband had such a "shitty job" (job de trou de cul), my husband and I should not count on my parents to help us pay for the mortgage, or to babysit our children, for that matter. Their years of raising children were over, he said.<br /><br />I can`t imagine saying that to your only child. But there you are...http://lesamisdurichelieu.blogspot.com/2018/01/owning-home.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Amie du Richelieu)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1349710577732511399.post-4251381450570043259Thu, 21 Dec 2017 19:32:00 +00002017-12-21T14:32:35.407-05:00Joyeux Noël & Bonne Année! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-q4RM83Fw4Sc/UNhGWigTpAI/AAAAAAAAKBg/fsn7uX9Sf6g/s1600/25%2Bdec.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="268" width="400" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-q4RM83Fw4Sc/UNhGWigTpAI/AAAAAAAAKBg/fsn7uX9Sf6g/s400/25%2Bdec.jpg"></a></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_mE1EOXyILXs/TRR7jiWe6wI/AAAAAAAABgY/ZkjHAXl4Lrc/s1600/xmas1.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 110px;" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/_mE1EOXyILXs/TRR7jiWe6wI/AAAAAAAABgY/ZkjHAXl4Lrc/s400/xmas1.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5554200090901408514"></a><br />http://lesamisdurichelieu.blogspot.com/2017/12/joyeux-noel-bonne-annee-merry-christmas.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Amie du Richelieu)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1349710577732511399.post-1475872788155277406Thu, 14 Dec 2017 19:45:00 +00002017-12-14T14:45:51.520-05:00The Ten Catmandments<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-nEKa1nznwRE/V5j-tXqsIuI/AAAAAAAAQcI/xQvK5tgkCxMWNnMCqK6eno1CKMIQmeMEQCLcB/s1600/Poppy%2Bbucket.jpg" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-nEKa1nznwRE/V5j-tXqsIuI/AAAAAAAAQcI/xQvK5tgkCxMWNnMCqK6eno1CKMIQmeMEQCLcB/s400/Poppy%2Bbucket.jpg" width="306" height="400" /></a><br /><br />- Thou shalt have no other gods before thyself<br /><br />- Thou shalt not kill, or at least, if thou art going to kill, thou shall have a game of football with the thing thou is going to kill before thou properly finishest it off<br /><br />- Thou shalt repeat the internal mantra " I hate this! It`s fucking great!" about the majority of life experiences.<br /><br />- Thou shalt not drink the water put out for thee by thy humans. Thou shalt instead demand to drink the freshest water in Christendom straight from the tap, although if that is not forthcoming, thou shalt protest by drinking any old rainy algae-spattered crap thou might find in next door`s garden.<br /><br />- Thou shalt ignore any toy thy human has bought for thee, especially the really expensive ones, but thou shalt dearly cherish the packaging of said toy, and have hours of fun with it.<br /><br />- Thou shalt forget thy mother and father quite quickly when seperated from them, and if thou happens to see them again, thou shalt sniff their bottoms then hiss at them intimidatingly.<br /><br />- Thou shalt snack voraciously, stealing at least one fish before the age of three, always remembering to leave something black and hard to remove behind after every meal, and getting irrationally excited when thy biscuit dispenser is topped up, even though thy new biscuits are just the same as those underneath.<br /><br />- Thou shalt not commit adultery, except in a kind of "dry hum" way, with thy owner`s cleaniest knitwear and bedding.<br /><br />- Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour`s cardboard box.<br /><br />- Thou shalt never forget the rule that thy affection towards thy human should rise and fall in direct proportion to the amount of miscellaneous crap stuck on thy fur at the time.<br /><br /> <b>Tom Cox</b>, <i>The Good, The Bad and The Furry</i><br /><br />http://lesamisdurichelieu.blogspot.com/2017/12/the-ten-catmandments.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Amie du Richelieu)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1349710577732511399.post-862664239098940922Thu, 07 Dec 2017 19:45:00 +00002017-12-07T14:45:36.824-05:00Let the cards fall where they may...<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ier7OMYPvyc/T9sfRhyzD2I/AAAAAAAAFbM/qMqGIOd_JZE/s1600/forest.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="400" width="281" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ier7OMYPvyc/T9sfRhyzD2I/AAAAAAAAFbM/qMqGIOd_JZE/s400/forest.jpg"></a><br /><b>Life is like a game of Solitaire: if the cards fall in the right way and you play smart, you`re a winner. But if the cards simply do not cooperate and no matter what you do, you have to tell yourself that it was simply not meant to be, and move on.</b>http://lesamisdurichelieu.blogspot.com/2017/12/let-cards-fall-where-they-may.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Amie du Richelieu)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1349710577732511399.post-9053034176819159624Thu, 30 Nov 2017 19:35:00 +00002017-11-30T14:45:08.115-05:00Solitaire<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ad6fuQ_uESM/VV4BsZNeaWI/AAAAAAAAPGg/mezdGNfGLao/s1600/Me%2B1965.jpg" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ad6fuQ_uESM/VV4BsZNeaWI/AAAAAAAAPGg/mezdGNfGLao/s400/Me%2B1965.jpg"></a><br /><br />I`ve started playing Solitaire again. The kind with a real deck of cards that you have to shuffle by hand. I play on the dining room table. When the cats let me.<br /><br />I hadn`t played since I was a teenager. Once my homework done, and if what my parents watched on TV did not interest me, I would play Solitaire for hours on end on their dining room table, listening to the rock and roll hits of the Dave Boxer show on CJAD, signing along to the love songs.<br /><br />While the cards went slap slap slap on the tablecloth, I dreamed of my first boyfriend, and yearned for those summer days spent necking while listening to the Beatles on the portable record player. He was the only boy I really enjoyed making out with.<br /><br />For my father, seeing that I was smitten, forced me to go out with other local boys. But none compared to that soft, tender touch, those blue eyes looking back at me. Only with him did I feel secure enough to be myself. With him, I felt I could do no harm. In his arms, the world was a good place to be in.<br /><br />But once summer vacation was over, he went back to the big city. Living a life completely different from my own, I thought. Did he think about me then? Was he as fond of me as I was of him? Or was I just a summer fling, convenient time out from school and city life? Those are the questions I was asking myself at the time...<br /><br />All these memories come flooding back now while the playing cards go slap slap slap on the tablecloth, some 50 years later. Some say they would give anyting to be young again. Not me. For me, being a teenager was a very lonely, frustrating time.<br /><br />For my parents had the very strict way of thinking that girls did not call boys they were interested in. A young lady had to wait for the phone to ring, playing hard to get.<br /><br />And he never called.http://lesamisdurichelieu.blogspot.com/2017/11/solitaire.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Amie du Richelieu)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1349710577732511399.post-7435190236661622123Mon, 13 Nov 2017 19:39:00 +00002017-11-13T14:39:19.360-05:00The Power of the State<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Znck0ZCCEyc/T0DjaKhfZOI/AAAAAAAAEXw/Mv0-jpZNoAg/s1600/1998%2Bsitting.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Znck0ZCCEyc/T0DjaKhfZOI/AAAAAAAAEXw/Mv0-jpZNoAg/s400/1998%2Bsitting.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5710814366146716898"></a>Above: from the cover page of local newspaper<br /><br /><b>"When you encounter the implacable power of the state it`s a deeply destabilising moment. In an ordinary life it happens very rarely - maybe never, maybe once or twice, but your individual being, your individual nature, seems suddenly worth nothing - you feel expendable - and that`s what frightens you, fundamentally, that`s what makes your bowels loosen."</b> - William Bayo, <i>Sweet Caress</i>http://lesamisdurichelieu.blogspot.com/2017/11/the-power-of-state.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Amie du Richelieu)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1349710577732511399.post-4762526861192645095Fri, 13 Oct 2017 18:44:00 +00002017-10-13T14:44:29.116-04:00The Frailty of Life<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2nYTDHYInJM/TtDa8K2OF3I/AAAAAAAADnQ/8xnPHuYsmrk/s1600/Bmilkweed%2526monarch%2BBlue%2BRidge%2BDiscovery%2BCenter.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-2nYTDHYInJM/TtDa8K2OF3I/AAAAAAAADnQ/8xnPHuYsmrk/s400/Bmilkweed%2526monarch%2BBlue%2BRidge%2BDiscovery%2BCenter.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5679279857352972146"></a>Photo: Blue Ridge Discovery Center<br /><br /><b>"How frail each life is. We mow a meadow, and kill a thousand butterflies. The racket of the mower, the sound of a fist hitting flesh, an american bomb striking a Middle Eastern city - perhaps in the way of these things the only difference among them is that of scale, We keep on walking toward clamour and then cannot accept what that clamour shows us."</b> - Jane Urquhart , <i>Sanctuary Line</i>http://lesamisdurichelieu.blogspot.com/2017/10/the-frailty-of-life.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Amie du Richelieu)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1349710577732511399.post-8775510890817439731Thu, 21 Sep 2017 18:23:00 +00002017-09-21T14:44:12.035-04:00Il faut interdire la fracturation hydraulique plutôt!<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rf6nM2zwtZs/VFt1fOh7aMI/AAAAAAAAOdQ/ncVvndkH_IE/s1600/OUI%2Binterdiction.jpg" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rf6nM2zwtZs/VFt1fOh7aMI/AAAAAAAAOdQ/ncVvndkH_IE/s400/OUI%2Binterdiction.jpg"></a><br /><b>Les plans d’eau du Québec ouverts aux pétrolières</b><br /><i>Publié dans Le Devoir du 21 septembre 2017 | Un texte d`Alexandre Shields</i><br /><br />Le gouvernement Couillard a décidé d’ouvrir les lacs et les rivières du Québec aux projets d’exploration et d’exploitation de pétrole et de gaz. Les forages en milieu hydrique, mais aussi ceux en milieu terrestre pourront d’ailleurs être réalisés avec des opérations de fracturation, à proximité de secteurs habités, d’écoles, d’aires protégées et de parcs nationaux.<br /><br /><br />Tandis que le ministre de l’Énergie et des Ressources naturelles, Pierre Arcand, est en « mission » en Asie, le gouvernement a publié mercredi quatre projets de règlements dans la Gazette officielle, dans la foulée de l’adoption de la première Loi sur les hydrocarbures de l’histoire de la province. Ces documents très techniques totalisant 269 pages précisent plusieurs des modalités qui encadreront les projets d’exploration et d’exploitation de pétrole et de gaz sur le territoire québécois.<br /><br /><br />Un des projets de règlements définit précisément les règles pour le « milieu hydrique ». Selon la définition inscrite dans la législation adoptée sous le bâillon par les libéraux, ce milieu peut être « un lac ou un cours d’eau à débit régulier ou intermittent ». En clair, le gouvernement a donc décidé d’ouvrir la porte aux projets d’exploration et d’exploitation dans les lacs et les rivières du Québec.<br /><br /><br />En se basant uniquement sur la carte officielle des 53 225 km2 de permis d’exploration en vigueur à l’heure actuelle au Québec, on constate que des dizaines de cours d’eau de différentes régions pourraient être ciblés par les entreprises pétrolières et gazières. C’est le cas, par exemple, du lac Saint-Jean. L’entreprise Olitra détient 400 km2 de permis dans cette région, dont une partie recouvre déjà le lac.<br /><br /><br />Dans la vallée du Saint-Laurent, notamment entre Montréal et Québec, les permis en vigueur recouvrent plusieurs rivières, dont la Saint-François, la Saint-Maurice, la Batiscan, la Sainte-Anne et la Chaudière. La rivière Richelieu est aussi recouverte par des permis, dont certains sont détenus par l’entreprise Gastem. En Gaspésie, ce sont des dizaines de lacs et de rivières qui se retrouvent dans des territoires sous permis, par exemple avec les entreprises Pétrolia et Junex.<br /><br /><br />Secteurs résidentiels<br /><br /><br />Pour obtenir une autorisation de forage en milieu hydrique, une entreprise devra en faire la demande au ministre de l’Énergie et des Ressources naturelles, responsable de l’application de la Loi sur les hydrocarbures.<br /><br /><br />Le projet de règlement de 115 pages prévoit d’ailleurs des dispositions pour encadrer les futurs forages, y compris ceux avec fracturation. L’entreprise qui souhaitera mener ces travaux devra notamment respecter une distance minimale de 175 mètres entre la tête du puits et « une concentration d’activités résidentielles, commerciales, industrielles ou de services ». Pour une résidence isolée, le règlement évoque une distance minimale de 150 mètres. C’est donc dire que les activités de l’industrie pourront se déployer très près de zones habitées.<br /><br /><br />Pour ces forages en milieu hydrique, mais aussi dans l’éventualité d’une production commerciale d’énergies fossiles, « le titulaire de l’autorisation ne peut positionner le site des activités à moins de 60 mètres d’un parc national ou d’une aire protégée », précise aussi le projet de règlement. Cela signifie que ces projets industriels pourront se déployer aux limites des parcs nationaux de la province, mais aussi des territoires qui bénéficient d’une protection en raison de leur grande valeur écologique.<br /><br /><br />Québec prévoit enfin une distance minimale de 40 mètres entre la tête d’un puits et « la voie navigable du fleuve Saint-Laurent ». Selon ce qu’a précisé le porte-parole du ministère de l’Énergie et des Ressources naturelles, Nicolas Bégin, le moratoire sur les forages dans la partie fluviale et l’estuaire continue cependant de s’appliquer.<br /><br /><br />Le règlement ne précise toutefois pas si les forages horizontaux, mais aussi les opérations de fracturation, seront autorisés sous le Saint-Laurent, ou encore sous les secteurs habités ou les aires protégées. Mais, quelles que soient les modalités, la Fondation Rivières qualifie le règlement sur les milieux hydriques de « menace directe » pour les cours d’eau.<br /><br /><br />Écoles et CPE<br /><br /><br />Le règlement sur l’exploitation pétrolière et gazière en milieu terrestre prévoit que les entreprises devront respecter les mêmes distances qu’en milieu hydrique par rapport aux secteurs habités. Cela signifie que le projet Haldimand de Pétrolia, en Gaspésie, pourrait aller de l’avant. Ce projet pétrolier rejeté par la Ville de Gaspé et critiqué par plusieurs citoyens est situé à 350 mètres d’un secteur résidentiel.<br /><br /><br />Pour les forages en milieu terrestre, le règlement fixe en outre à 275 mètres la distance minimale à respecter, par rapport à « un établissement de santé et de services sociaux », ou encore par rapport à « un établissement d’enseignement », « un bâtiment où sont offerts des services de garde à l’enfance » et « un site patrimonial ». Dans le cas d’un cimetière, cette distance séparatrice est ramenée à 100 mètres.<br /><br /><br />Tant pour les forages en milieu terrestre que pour ceux en milieu hydrique, « le ministre peut toutefois permettre la réduction des distances si le titulaire de l’autorisation lui démontre qu’une mesure de protection efficace permet de réduire les risques », précise le document élaboré par le gouvernement Couillard.<br /><br /><br />Les pétrolières pourront par ailleurs recourir à la « récupération assistée du pétrole », une technique d’exploitation qui n’a jamais été évoquée auparavant au Québec. Celle-ci permet d’augmenter la quantité de brut ramené à la surface en forant des puits supplémentaires qui permettent d’injecter, par exemple, du gaz ou des produits chimiques, pour stimuler la production.<br /><br /><br />Dans un autre projet de règlement publié mercredi dans la Gazette officielle, le gouvernement a choisi de fixer une limite à la « responsabilité » des entreprises du secteur des énergies fossiles. Celle-ci plafonnera à 10 millions de dollars dans le cas des projets en milieu terrestre, tandis qu’elle atteindra 25 millions en milieu hydrique. Une erreur, selon Greenpeace, qui croit que la responsabilité devrait être illimitée, de façon à s’assurer que l’entreprise assume totalement la facture, en cas de déversement.<br /><br />Lien: <a href="http://www.ledevoir.com/environnement/actualites-sur-l-environnement/508467/les-plans-d-eau-du-quebec-ouverts-aux-petrolieres">http://www.ledevoir.com/environnement/actualites-sur-l-environnement/508467/les-plans-d-eau-du-quebec-ouverts-aux-petrolieres</a><br /><br />§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§<br /><br />The Couillard government has decided to give a green light to exploration and exploitation of oil and gas in Quebec`s rivers and lakes. Drilling in a water environment as well as those done on terra firma could also be done with fracking operations, near inhabited areas, schools, protected areas and national parks.<br /><br />While the Natural Resources and Energy Minister Pierre Arcand is on a "mission in Asia, the government has decided to publish Wednesday four bills in the Official Gazette, following the adoption of the first law on hydrocarbons ever passed in the province of Quebec. These very technical documents added up to 269 pages and give in great details the arrangements that will oversee oil and gas exploration and exploitation projects in Quebec.<br /><br />One of the bills defines very precisely the rules for the "water environment". As per the definition in the legislation adopted by the Liberals under closure, this environment can be a lake or a watercourse with regular or sporadic flow. In other words, the government has decided to give a green light to exploration and exploitation projects in Quebec`s lakes and rivers. http://lesamisdurichelieu.blogspot.com/2017/09/il-faut-dire-non-la-fracturation.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Amie du Richelieu)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1349710577732511399.post-3444079384386713178Mon, 18 Sep 2017 18:53:00 +00002017-09-18T14:53:01.949-04:00Le Vernis Environnementaliste<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-4U6K5JMwBlw/U9jpvYTGt6I/AAAAAAAAN5M/IAnfI_vHrCw/s1600/Ristigouche.jpg" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-4U6K5JMwBlw/U9jpvYTGt6I/AAAAAAAAN5M/IAnfI_vHrCw/s400/Ristigouche.jpg"></a><br /><br /><b>Le vernis environnementaliste</b><br /><i>Texte de Boucar Diouf publié dans La Presse du 16 septembre 2017<br /></i><br /><br /><br /><br />Parlant de l’île d’Anticosti, le premier ministre Couillard, qui a un attachement indéniable pour les lieux, disait ceci: « Le délabrement de ce milieu unique ne portera pas ma signature… » Le problème, c’est que des milieux uniques comme Anticosti, on en trouve dans bien des endroits de la province et il faudrait peut-être aussi se soucier de leur protection avec autant d’émotion.<br /><br />Récemment, on apprenait que 5,5 millions de dollars parmi l’argent reçu par la pétrolière Junex pour décamper d’Anticosti serviraient à augmenter ses activités sur le site Galt, non loin de la ville de Gaspé. Est-ce qu’il y aura de la fracturation hydraulique à moyen ou long terme ? L’histoire ne le dit pas, mais il est permis de se poser ces questions: « Pourquoi est-il plus noble de protéger Anticosti de l’exploration pétrolière que la péninsule gaspésienne ? Pourquoi minimiser les inquiétudes des Gaspésiens pour leurs sources d’eau potable ? »<br /><br />La Gaspésie est aussi un lieu unique, M. Couillard, et ce dont elle a le plus besoin, c’est d’initiatives novatrices, d’infrastructures et de projets structurants pour en faire un lieu de tourisme et d’écotourisme incontournable en Amérique du Nord, à longueur d’année.<br /><br />Le climat mondial se réchauffe et les étés y sont moins courts et plus chauds. Il y a ici la montagne, la mer, la forêt, de magnifiques rivières et bien d’autres attractions pour combler les amateurs d’exotisme, de nature et même de dépaysement. <br /><br />La Gaspésie est une région des plus exceptionnelles, qui espère encore le politicien visionnaire qui verra en elle la perle qui n’attend que d’être révélée plus largement à la planète, pour le bien du Québec au complet.<br /><br />Quand la pétrolière Gastem essaye de mettre la municipalité gaspésienne de Ristigouche-Partie-Sud-Est en faillite, le gouvernement reste silencieux. Pour le ministre Heurtel, le Règlement sur le prélèvement des eaux et leur protection (RPEP), qui fixe la distance de forage à 500 mètres des sources d’eau potable, repose sur des « assises scientifiques solides ». Rappelons ici que c’est sensiblement la même chose qu’il disait pour justifier les autorisations de forages exploratoires à TransCanada dans le sanctuaire du béluga, avant d’être sévèrement réprimandé par la juge Claudine Roy, qui avait ordonné l’arrêt des travaux.<br /><br />Le même ministre Heurtel qui, réagissant aux conclusions d’une commission d’enquête administrative qui montrait du doigt des irrégularités dans le même dossier, fera son mea culpa en juin 2015. Il avouera que Québec aurait dû avoir de meilleures informations scientifiques avant de permettre les forages exploratoires.<br /><br />Est-il logique de penser qu’on peut vivre dans un pays où les pétrolières peuvent empêcher les citoyens de décider comment ils veulent protéger leur eau potable, qui est la chose la plus importante dans leur vie ? À la manière de son slogan sur la neutralité religieuse de l’État, j’aurais aimé entendre le premier ministre marteler : « Ce n’est pas non plus le rôle de l’industrie de dire aux municipalités comment protéger leur eau potable ! »<br /><br />On s’insurge contre l’intimidation dans nos écoles, mais devant ce qui ressemble au harcèlement d’une municipalité par une pétrolière, on reste silencieux.<br /><br />Pourquoi le gouvernement n’a-t-il pas pensé rembourser à Gastem la somme de 1,5 million qu’il avait investi au lieu de la regarder tordre le bras à cette petite municipalité sans moyens ? Pourquoi peut-on payer Junex pour qu’elle quitte Anticosti, mais ne peut-on pas faire la même chose pour soulager les gens de Ristigouche, alors qu’une certaine responsabilité étatique s’applique ici aussi ?<br /><br />Après tout, c’est le gouvernement qui a permis légalement à l’industrie de travailler à 500 mètres des sources d’eau potable. Une décision unilatérale que conteste une partie de Ristigouche, qui souhaite envoyer, à juste raison, les foreuses un peu plus loin. L’huile et l’eau ne se sont jamais bien mélangées même quand on veut brasser des affaires. En 2015, une faible quantité d'hydrocarbures dans l'eau de Longueuil, où j'habite, a suffi à créer une gigantesque crise dont aucune municipalité ne veut faire l’expérience.<br /><br />C’est le même gouvernement qui vient de rejeter l’idée d’un comité indépendant pour choisir les membres du BAPE. Quand les libéraux se réservent le droit d’avoir le contrôle sur le comité de sélection des membres du BAPE, on assiste à un exercice totalement antidémocratique qui laisse présager des arnaques environnementales sur fond d’audiences publiques bidon et bien pipées. Le BAPE doit rester un organisme totalement neutre si on ne veut pas en faire un outil au service des chambres de commerce, du Conseil du patronat et des autres groupes d’intérêts qui gravitent autour du pouvoir.<br /><br />Lorsque M. Harper, qui était ouvertement allergique à la protection de l’environnement, avait décidé d’avoir un certain contrôle sur l’Office national de l’énergie, il avançait à visage découvert main dans la main avec les pétrolières.<br /><br />Le problème du gouvernement de M. Couillard, c’est qu’il a des méthodes harpériennes sous un mince vernis environnementaliste.<br /><br />Si vous grattez un peu, vous verrez suinter un parfum d’hypocrisie, enseveli sous un verbiage étoffé où l’on se fait aller les babines allègrement pendant que les bottines attendent patiemment.<br /><br />Lien: <a href="http://plus.lapresse.ca/screens/09567638-d07e-4fd1-a3b1-90679cf3c825%7C_0.html">http://plus.lapresse.ca/screens/09567638-d07e-4fd1-a3b1-90679cf3c825%7C_0.html</a><br /><br />http://lesamisdurichelieu.blogspot.com/2017/09/le-vernis-environnementaliste.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Amie du Richelieu)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1349710577732511399.post-5897278055135685160Mon, 11 Sep 2017 18:33:00 +00002017-09-11T14:33:48.694-04:00Butterflies and Dragonflies<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-3xyU9du6uiU/T1YMiBxmtZI/AAAAAAAAEd8/e5yUmoR1fvU/s1600/hummer.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 382px; height: 400px;" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-3xyU9du6uiU/T1YMiBxmtZI/AAAAAAAAEd8/e5yUmoR1fvU/s400/hummer.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5716770555725002130"></a><br /><br /><b>Butterflies and dragonflies<br />bumblebees and bees<br />how content and happy am I<br />Living among creatures such as these!</b>http://lesamisdurichelieu.blogspot.com/2017/09/butterflies-and-dragonflies.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Amie du Richelieu)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1349710577732511399.post-3472329051844036891Thu, 07 Sep 2017 19:01:00 +00002017-09-07T15:15:12.606-04:00The Study<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-iKBmvqTtBtY/VEPGERDJ7QI/AAAAAAAAOZU/kVkFYqvYDbo/s1600/computer%2Broom.jpg" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-iKBmvqTtBtY/VEPGERDJ7QI/AAAAAAAAOZU/kVkFYqvYDbo/s400/computer%2Broom.jpg"></a>Photo:The state of study when I re-took possession of it.<br /><br />These days, when the weather is not nice enough to play outside and all my chores are done, I go work on the spare bedroom that I use as a study. It is in the North corner of the house. <br /><br />It is the last room of the main floor of my home that has not been renovated/finished. When I bought the house in 1979, the owner/widow used it as her own bedroom. It had only one window looking out on the backyard. The first thing I did when I bought the house was to have the washer/dryer brought up from the unfinished basement into that room It was now my sewing/mending/ironing laundry room. I hang out must of my laundry on the clothesline outside, so that set-up for the laundry room made much more sense: the access to the backyard was much easier. I intended to take the 2 other small bedrooms and make one large master bedroom out of them, which I did later on. <br /><br />Then in 1985, T moved in. That back room then became his computer room, even though the washer/dryer stayed put. It was far from being an ideal situation. He put in an awning window in the upper half of the wall on the side of the house so he could have cross-ventilation, insulated and covered with beadboard parts of the walls, covered part of the floors with laminated wood flooring and left a hole in the ceiling where he checked the electrical wiring. He then proceeded to fill up the room to the max. <br /><br />In 2013, when I had the bathroom extended in the back of the house, including a nice designated laundry room, the back window of that spare room became closed in. I asked the men who did the work to leave the opening as is after removing the window: I already had this idea of making that hole in the wall a false window, putting in white LED lights and covering the opening with a frosted sheet of plastic to diffuse the light nicely. <br /><br />And so now, when it`s raining outside (like right now), I go work in there. There is already 2 coats of white paint in the "false window" so that light be reflected as much as possible. Another coat will be necessary. Next step will be to put in a string of LED lights. I want to stop there for now, because I want to paint the ceiling white - again to reflect as much light as possible. So I have to figure out what to do with that hole in the ceiling. And so on, and so on....<br /><br />I have already figured out the final lay-out of the furniture in there, after finding solutions to finish the walls and floor. So I`m looking forward do having that room done also. I love my home!http://lesamisdurichelieu.blogspot.com/2017/09/the-study.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Amie du Richelieu)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1349710577732511399.post-5202321452266530029Mon, 28 Aug 2017 18:21:00 +00002017-08-31T14:30:42.968-04:00Mother tongues<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-YJ-JPS56nc4/UCjbwqXVbjI/AAAAAAAAGGM/bCRwPhwc7bQ/s1600/hard%2Bat%2Bwork.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="373" width="400" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-YJ-JPS56nc4/UCjbwqXVbjI/AAAAAAAAGGM/bCRwPhwc7bQ/s400/hard%2Bat%2Bwork.jpg"></a></div><br /><b>"A language penetrates the mind like water, imbues the one who uses it with untranslatable emotions and attitudes and insights. In American she was not the same person, though no more nor less herself."</b> - Kay Maristed, <i>Broken Ground</i>http://lesamisdurichelieu.blogspot.com/2017/08/mother-tongues.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Amie du Richelieu)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1349710577732511399.post-3122250920399266285Thu, 17 Aug 2017 18:34:00 +00002017-08-17T14:34:42.334-04:00Those pleasant things...<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-GXJ3UqaUbKw/TnsqEuTLoAI/AAAAAAAADCk/UZSpLxGmRj4/s1600/monarch%2B%2526%2Bflower.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-GXJ3UqaUbKw/TnsqEuTLoAI/AAAAAAAADCk/UZSpLxGmRj4/s400/monarch%2B%2526%2Bflower.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5655160017730117634"></a><br /><b>"There will no longer be so many pleasant things to look at if responsible people do not do something about the unpleasant ones!" </b> - Madeleine L`Engle, <i>A Wrinkle In Time</i>http://lesamisdurichelieu.blogspot.com/2017/08/those-pleasant-things.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Amie du Richelieu)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1349710577732511399.post-8864735296290819412Mon, 07 Aug 2017 18:53:00 +00002017-08-07T14:53:33.153-04:00Le Québec, une province bicéphale</a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-EKFTC_-ow7s/Tr0PiwGjR_I/AAAAAAAADgs/UFx3enAroTE/s1600/fracFarnhamLa%2BVoix%2Bde%2Bl%2527Est.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 267px;" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-EKFTC_-ow7s/Tr0PiwGjR_I/AAAAAAAADgs/UFx3enAroTE/s400/fracFarnhamLa%2BVoix%2Bde%2Bl%2527Est.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5673708195259041778"></a>Photo: La Voix de l'Est, le site de Farnham<br /><br />Désormais, l`île d`Anticosti est protégée de toute exploration et exploitation pétrolière et gazière. Gaspé, par contre, ne semble pas mériter une telle protection. Et que dire de toute les basses-terres du Saint-Laurent? <br /><br />Pas de doute, il faut rester aux aguets!http://lesamisdurichelieu.blogspot.com/2017/08/le-quebec-une-province-bicephale.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Amie du Richelieu)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1349710577732511399.post-2254395586204808395Fri, 28 Jul 2017 18:41:00 +00002017-07-28T14:41:00.025-04:00Addictions<b>"Addiction is a terrible thing. It`ll steal your health, your friends, family, careers. Judgment. It`ll steal your soul. And when there`s nothing left, it takes your life."</b> - Louise Penny, <i>How The Light Gets In</i>http://lesamisdurichelieu.blogspot.com/2017/07/addictions.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Amie du Richelieu)0